Blaze in Hutt Rd store

Press, 1 June 1977, Page 1

Blaze in Hutt Rd store

PA Wellington Fairbairn Wright’s large warehouse on the Hutt Road at Waiwharawhara was gutted by fire last night. The cost of the fire was not available but the value of the stock alone was put at hundreds of thousands of dollars. Mr B. Pollock, a hardware supplier, estimated the value of stock at 5300,000. The warehouse was completely gutted in the fire which started shortly before 8 pan. and reached its peak 30 minutes later. Before this firemen looked as if they had the flames under control several times but every time the flames broke out elsewhere in the building.

At 8.30, when the back of the building caught and the fire erupted to its peak, there were nine fire engines and more than 50 men at the fire.

Firemen had been wary of entering the building in the early stages of the fire for fear of axy-acetylene bottles and other chemicals exploding but shortly before 9 p.m. they broke; into the building and turned their hoses on to the flames at close quarters. By that time the fire in the front of the building was under control but the back was still burning fiercely. Water was poured on to the back of the building by firemen from the adjacent railway’s building, two snorkels and firemen who had entered the warehouse. Firemen were still at the first late last night and a number remained over night in case of flare-ups.

The cause of the fire was not known last night but a security guard who was checking a nearby building at around 7.50 p.m. said he heard an explosion.